Snapshots
by msgrits
Summary: They had an affair. They broke up. The have a son. What now? GRS COMPLETE
1. Default Chapter

**A/N **

**This is something different for me so I would love to hear feedback. Thanks to Ashleigh and Joan who betad. This story is full of angst. Big surprise I know. No need to worry though. I am a happy ending kind of girl. **

**Thanks for Phish. She did my after market beta work. **

**This story is in two parts. Part two should be up shortly**

**I own nothing. CSI is not mine although GD is on his way to pick me up for a date.**

Snapshot Part 1

He watched her from his office door as she slid from lab to lab. He rarely closed his door

She looked like one of those Hollywood starlets in her form fitting sweaters and blouses hugging the swell of the baby, his baby.

She hardly stopped smiling these days. She laughed with the fellas and had found a new kinship with Catherine. As for him, she simply looked through him, handling her assignments and their work relationship with serenity and professionalism.

Months before she had shown up at his house one morning after shift, weeks after their month long affair had ended badly.

"_Hi."_

"_Hello."_

_He didn't move. Her dark hair curled in the morning dew._

"_May I come in Gris?"_

"_Why?"_

_She rolled her eyes. What in, God's name had she ever seen in this selfish egomaniac, this simple man who could not control her so he tossed her from his life like day old garbage. _

_He was pitiful when she really thought about it. He was nearly fifty years old and had only two friends, although Catherine and Brass were marginal at best. He had only dated two women seriously in the last five years, a lonely dominatrix and a subordinate in the throws of a desperate crush._

_Both women thought they could change him. Both women were wrong. Both relationships were over before they started. Sara was glad that she had gotten out relatively unscathed. Heather probably felt the same._

"_Look Gil I don't want to fuck you. As it is, I wish I had never fucked you, but I did and that's why I'm here." _

"_Enough with the riddles, Sara. What do you want?"_

_Her dark eyes became angry slits. "I'm pregnant."_

"_I thought you were on the pill."_

"_I thought you were too old to produce any viable sperm," she spat._

"_Did you do this on purpose?" _

_She struggled to control her temper. "No, Gil, I didn't. Even in my infinite fawning, I knew I did not want to be attached to you for the rest of my life."_

"_When are you having the termination?"_

_She started to snap again but bit back the retort. She couldn't pretend that she hadn't seriously considered an abortion. _

"_I'm having the baby… I'm keeping it."_

_Gil stood looking at her for a too long a time. "What do you want from me?"_

_Sara turned and retraced her steps. He didn't follow. _

Now she sat laughing at something Catherine had said. He caught the words "little girls" and "tuition".

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Gil knew a process server when he saw one. He took the bundle of papers the nervous young man offered and tore it open.

Paternity suit filed by one Miss Sara Sidle vs. Mr. Gilbert Anthony Grissom.

She wanted money and not just a little bit. She hoped that she could reason with him, thus the phone call three weeks before.

"_Gil I need money to help with the baby."_

"_I didn't decide to have a baby, Sara, you did. Why should I be asked to support this kid?"_

"_It takes two, Gil. I don't need a lot but there's daycare to consider. I'll need a bigger place."_

"_Sara it's not my problem. You should have taken all that into consideration when you made this decision."_

He couldn't say why he was being so unreasonable. He could give Sara half his check and he would hardly feel the dent. Mostly, he knew, it pissed him off to see her everyday, growing big with the baby, the son or daughter she would raise without him.

Maybe he was hurt because she hadn't loved him like she said she did. How could a woman who loved him accept his rejection so evenly and simply? She didn't cry or fret. She handed him his house key and asked for hers back. She showed up for her shift looking well rested and serene.

The next month he found himself oddly pleased that she called in sick twice and ran from the room when Nick's Chinese food arrived. Maybe the break up was taking a toll on her after all.

He couldn't know it was the baby, not losing him, that was affecting her.

He looked at the stack of papers and wondered how his ordered life had come to unravel with the one siren song that was Sara.

He picked up the phone to call Mac, his attorney.

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Sara didn't want to be in the room. Tonya, her attorney, strongly advised that Sara take the meeting with Gil and his legal counsel.

She sat staring blankly at the wall as Gil's attorney droned on about fair and reasonable support. She filtered most of it out, deciding not to bring up the weekend trip to Paris, the diamond and gold watch he had given her for her birthday, along with the matching earrings. All of which had transpired during the five week relationship.

Gil hadn't spoken since he entered the room. They had left work, eyeing one another across the parking lot, wondering how they could weasel out of what would certainly be a disastrous meeting.

"Sara," the short, sweaty man said. "I think this offer is more than fair."

Sara took the white sheet of paper and looked at the numbers. Methodically her long fingers ripped the cheap copy paper. After she was done, she stacked the pieces into a neat pile. Her dark eyes pierced Gil's across the table.

_Please don't let my baby look like him. Of all the stupid things I have done, he was the worst._

"I cannot believe that you think that will support a child. That wouldn't support a dog, let alone a kid. You should be ashamed of yourself… but it's clear that you aren't."

"Sara…"

Sara put rested her hand on her belly. Whenever her son heard Gil's voice, he kicked. He kicked hard. She stayed as far away from him as possible when they were in the same room. She braced herself for the tumult.

"Why do you do that every time I'm near you? What do you think I'm going to do to you?" He asked in a low voice so that the others barely heard him.

Sara closed her eyes as the first kick hit. "Not that you give a damn, Gris, but every time he hears your voice he starts moving. He doesn't know yet that his father is an asshole who doesn't want to help support him."

Gil looked down at the table and studied his hands. He stood and buttoned the jacket that was too big for him. He had lost weight since the breakup. He got the courage to look her in her eyes as he spouted a number far more generous than the one she had asked for.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled and he left the lawyers to work it out with Sara and his son.

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Gil stood outside of Sara's hospital room door. He had been there for hours at the other end of the hall, watching them all come and go. Catherine had sent a group page. Sara was in labor with his baby. His son.

He watched from a discreet distance as Nick let out a loud whoop near 1 a.m. "Justin Michael Sidle has made his entrance, weighing in at 8 pounds, 4 ounces. Mother and baby are well."

That had been hours ago. He watched them leave with promises to return as soon as their respective shifts were over.

"May I help you sir?"

Gil turned to the tall African American nurse. She looked a bit like Mia.

"Um…my son and my…his mother…my son was just born and he's in there." Gil nodded towards the white hospital room door.

She smiled evenly. She looked her watch. "It's nearly time for their morning check. Do you want me to tell her that you're here?"

Uncertainties filled his mind. What right did he have to see the boy? He had wanted nothing to do with him. Going so far that he had refused to help support him.

"Um, maybe you could ask her if it's okay for me to come in. Her name is Sara."

"I know Dr. Grissom," she said showing white teeth.

The famous eyebrow went up.

"You processed my son's car accident a few weeks ago."

"Mrs. Aponte, I'm sorry my mind, is all over the place. How's he doing?"

Martin Aponte was a star forward for UNLV and a straight "A" student. The brake line on his inherited sedan had been cut. The boy had escaped with a mild concussion and some chest bruising.

"He's fine. I understand you have a son now. It changes you. I'll go check with Miss Sidle."

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Sara sat up in bed. Her skin was pasty and faint circles were under her eyes.

"I know I look like shit, Gris. I just had a baby. Don't just stand there. Come in and meet your son."

Gil walked across the floor of the room. He felt old and foolish as he looked down at the small form Sara held.

He looked at Sara uncertainly. "He looks like you."

"Me?"

"Yes. He's got your chin and your mouth."

"He does?"

Gil nodded as the boy's eyes flew open.

"There he is kiddo. Your daddy. The one that made you dance on mommy's bladder."

"Sara I…"

"Gris, just hold your son."

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Gil held Justin cradled in one strong arm. Sara still didn't trust him. She had to go out of town for a few days and she wanted to take Justin with her. She had stopped breastfeeding a few weeks before and Gil wanted Justin to stay with him.

"Sara, I am his father."

"And I'm his mother. He should be with me."

"Sara, that's sexist."

She folded one arm across her torso. He was right.

"I can take care of my son for three days."

"Who will watch him at night when you are at work?"

"The same people who watch him when you're at work, the lab day care," Gil said evenly. She was being inordinately difficult.

"So you'll just waltz in there with him? How are you going to explain that?"

"I don't have to explain anything. The lab and the daycare are in separate parts of the building and they have separate entrances. What difference does it make? At some point he's going to talk and he's going to call me Daddy or Dad or Pop or Old Man that Looks Like Me."

Sara laughed, breaking her tough exterior. "I thought you said he looks like me."

"Curly hair, crooked teeth. Six on one hand. Half a dozen on the other."

Gil watched the mother of his child. Things were not fabulous between them but they weren't awful. A friendly truce had been declared after Gil had shown up at the hospital. Sara paced for a time across the carpeted floor of her son's nursery.

"Gris, I know that I'm being unreasonable. You've been very clear about that. But he's my baby and I don't want to be away from him for three days. He's not even four months old."

Gil looked down at his sleeping son and said the only thing that made sense. "I'll come with you."

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Sara needed to go to the California to finish off the sale of her parent's Bed and Breakfast. Since her mother's imprisonment the property had fallen into the disrepair. A resurgence in land prices, along with the coast, had earned Sara a tidy sum on the ancient property. She had even offered to lower her child support request. Gil had told her it wasn't necessary. He was deeply sorry for his behavior and tried to show her that in the way he cared for Justin.

They checked into a two bedroom suite with a small kitchenette. Sara got up early on Friday and dressed quickly. As the time drew near, Gil lumbered from his room, his hair in disarray and sleep clouding his eyes.

Sara laughed softly.

"Thanks Sara. You are so good for my ego."

"How long you gonna be gone?"

Sara looked sheepish.

"I don't want to go," she said quickly.

"You don't have to. Tell them to bring you the paperwork. You shouldn't have to go back to that place if you don't want to. What's the phone number?"

Sara handed him the realtor's card.

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After Sara had signed the papers in the lobby of the hotel, she returned to find Gil sitting near the open sliding doors that led to the balcony reading. Justin was in his carrier enjoying the sounds of the ocean and his father's voice.

"So what do you think about the Yankees prospects this year? I for one think they need a power hitter. Not going to make to the play offs without one. You think you might want to play some ball? Looks like you might be big enough to be a hitter. Course if you take after your Mom you might be suited more for basketball. We'll see. Doesn't matter to me if you play sports or not. Tell you the truth, as much of overachiever as I am, I don't care what you do as long as you do it honestly, as long as you love it. It's important that you have something or someone you are passionate about. Actually it's better to have the someone. Remember that okay?"

Sara wondered if Gil was still a little passionate about her.

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"Can you take Justin for the night?"

"You don't have to ask me questions like that."

"I don't want be presumptuous. Is his room ready at your place yet?"

Truth be told, Gil had done very little to the extra room in his house. He liked that he and Sara were forced to do parenting together. If his son had a room at his house, he would no longer have a reason to be at Sara's all the time.

"No," Gil said evenly, trying not give away his position.

"Oh. It's just that I have a thing."

"A thing?"

"A date."

His heart fell to the very pit of his stomach. He struggled to save face. "I'll stop by that place on Munez. They assemble and deliver furniture within twenty four hours."

Sara sighed. "Thanks Gil you're a lifesaver and Gil…"

"Yes Sara."

"You're a very good father."

The phone disconnected and Gil wondered at his infinite stupidly.

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Sara snatched up the phone. Gil never called when she was out with Martin. His unfailing politeness and consideration irritated Sara. "Sidle."

"I had to take Justin to St. Mary's. He has a fever of nearly one hundred one."

"I'll meet you at the Emergency entrance."

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Sara leapt from the car and Martin Barksdale took in the scene. He knew Dr. Grissom from a couple of court cases he had tried. He'd heard the rumors about Gil and Sara. That he and Sara had carried on a thing for years, that he might be the father of her son. When he had asked her point blank about it she had said that she was not seeing Gil and so he had asked her out.

Now he sat in his mid size Mercedes, not unlike the one Gil drove, watching him mummer against Sara's hair as the tears that she would not shed in front of him broke through the surface.

"It's okay. He's going to be okay. He's tough, just like his Mom."

They disappeared into the building but not before Gil threw him a menacing glance, not the first one he had thrown at Martin.

This was Gil Grissom's family and he didn't belong there.

Martin agreed. He would miss Sara Sidle.

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They lay in what was called a family room where children and parents shared the same cheery room when a child was admitted.

After his fever had started to recede Gil had convinced Sara to take a nap, eventually laying down with her when his own body had started to dissolve under the pressure and molded to her seeking out warmth and familiarity.

Periodically Justin would open his eyes to make sure his parents were still in the room. This being sick might have been worth it all if it got both his parents to sleep in the room with him and together no less.

Besides, this room had bug pictures all over it.

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Catherine and Warrick stood looking at Sandy, their favorite nurse in ER.

"Look guys. I just got on but I would have known if a Sidle checked in. Sara and Justin aren't here. I have all your last names flagged. Brown was a chore so I flagged Warrick's social."

Nick and Greg joined their friends. The crime scene they had been processing turned out to be a practical joke between rival fraternities.

"Hey, where're Justin and Sara?" Nick asked.

Sandy tapped on keys as an alert came across her screen. "There's no Justin Sidle here but there is a Justin Grissom in 211 on the pediatric floor."

"Told you." Warrick said as he led the way. "And this time I want my money Stokes."

Mother, Father and son were asleep as Catherine opened the door. The cool hall air tickled Grissom's nose and he stirred a bit. He made eye contact with Catherine and mouthed that he would meet them in the hall.

"How's Justin?" Catherine asked as the others stood around nervously.

"Better. His temp is down. His breathing's better. He'll be home by tomorrow."

"What do you need from us?" Warrick wanted to know.

"I need you guys to cover. Sara's not going to want to leave him and neither do I so we won't be in for at least a week. I called Ecklie. He's furious. I told him that Sara and I both needed to exercise the Family Leave Act. He asked if it was for the same reason and I told him it was none of his business. Don't put yourselves on the line for me. At this point I could stay home with him if need be. Just try and keep Sara out of the line of fire. Don't lie but don't volunteer anything. We're safe for awhile cause he has Sara's last name."

"You got it big guy," Greg volunteered, "But he doesn't have Sara's last name. He has

yours."

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"When did you change his name?" Gil asked.

He had not known that his son had his last name until he had given the hospital his Social Security Number.

"Couple of weeks ago. It was supposed to be your Father's Day Present." Sara said quietly as she rocked their son. Sara and Gil had been particularly clingy since Justin's hospital stay.

"Thank you." Gil's voice was also hushed as his hand went to touch Justin's black hair, savoring the brief connection with Sara's flesh as he did so.

"A son should have his father's name," Sara said simply, not looking at Gil.

"Some father's don't deserve it. Sara…" He didn't look at her as she spoke the next words.

"I should have said something before now but..." He stopped and took a deep breath.

"I don't know that I can explain myself. I acted like an ass."

Justin made a smacking sound and wiggled in his sleep. "I wish I knew why, too. Why you broke up with me. Why you acted like such an ass. I wish I knew, too, Grissom. You're wrong though."

Silence.

"You deserve to have a son with your name."

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"He says one of us has to quit or be fired."

"We can't just switch shifts?" Sara asked, worry pulling at her mouth.

Ecklie had not asked Gil if Justin was his son. Truth be told, he didn't want to know. No matter how he felt about Gil or Sara, he couldn't afford to loose any CSIs, let alone two with their kind of experience. When the new insurance policies came across his desk and Justin Grissom was listed as a dependant on Gil's policy, he had been forced to address the situation.

"As long as I'm a supervisor and you're not, I might end up supervising you no matter what shift I'm on."

Sara nodded. "What do I do?"

Gil was surprised at the question. "If you want to quit…"

Gil saw the alarm in her eyes. "If you want to finish school and stay home, you can do that. I'll handle the financial responsibility."

"Gris…"

"Don't answer. Don't answer. You can keep your apartment or we can buy a bigger house. Whatever you want. I'm not suggesting that we're a couple, but we are a family and Justin is the most important thing."

He exhaled heavily as Sara snapped.

"You don't think I know that?"

He held her gaze. "It's either me or you and I make more money."

"There are other options."

Gil refused to say it, hear it or think about it.

"I could find job somewhere else. I could go back to Frisco."

It was Gil's turn to snap. "No!" he said ferociously. "You are not taking my son away from me. No!"

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The fight had landed them in therapy sitting on opposite sides of a purple leather couch, the intimacy they had formed draining away as Sara glared at him.

Verdict.

"You two have unresolved romantic relationship issues that are coloring your parenting relationship. Gil, you want to fix everything for Sara because you don't believe you are worthy and Sara, you don't trust Gil."

She blinked back tears. He tried to control his breathing.

"You also need to deal with the fact that you are still very much in love with one another. That doesn't mean you belong together, but you do have to deal with it. Truth be told, I don't know if you two should resume your romantic relationship. Your relationship is extremely dysfunctional."

Sara quit. She went back to school. She taught a few undergraduate classes and worked on starting a consulting business. Gil put a down payment on the house next to his.

He started dating. She seethed silently, not remembering that she was the first one to break the unspoken rule

She recognized her own hypocrisy but did not seek to correct it.

Vanessa was a buxom blond creature who used to be a swimsuit model. She was barely thirty and a member of Mensa.

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Catherine warned him of trouble ahead. He ignored her. He was tired of being alone, of not having Sara, of not having sex, of everything that revolved around the dysfunction of their relationship.

Vanessa was available, willing, smart, and easy to deal with.

Sara was difficult, smart and hard to navigate.

He was tired. It never occurred to him that he threw the rock that started the war.

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It finally came to a head when Sara used her key to enter the house while Vanessa was alone. She said she needed one of Justin's t-shirts.

"So she can just waltz right in here when you aren't home? While I am here alone?"

_So much for easy_, Grissom thought. "We have a son together."

"Gil, I got that. I understand and admire your devotion to your son, and I would be willing integrate into this situation if Sara would at least be civil to me. She came in here to show me that she will always be a part of your life. She barely spoke. She moved through this house like she owns it."

"I'll talk to her." He said, trying to appease the blond woman.

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"You should have knocked. You knew I wasn't there."

She sucked on her bottom lip and thrust her mother's breasts forward

"I didn't realize there were rules. YOU insisted that I move in next door. I could've stayed where I was."

"I know. I didn't expect to start dating someone. Things have changed. When you start dating again, things will change for you."

Sara pouted. "Maybe this wasn't the best idea. Maybe I should move back to San Franscio. Our lives will have clear cut divisions that way."

The moving threat. It had been the third time she had used it in as many months. Justin was on the verge of walking.

"Sara. We have joint custody. You can't just up and leave." He said rationally, fear gripping his heart.

"I'm his mother. I'm his mother whose income has been cut considerably. Besides, Justin will probably be my only child. You and Vanessa can have other kids. She's young and you're…well fertile." The words dripped with sweetness and accusation. She knew what buttons to push.

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"So what are you going to do?" Catherine asked twirling the ring on her right hand as she rubbed the base of her neck with her other hand. She was tired and had a headache.

"Sara is not going to dictate what I do with my life. I tried. She started dating first."

"When exactly did you try Gi1? When you broke up with her or when you refused to take care of your financial responsibilities?" Catherine asked wearily.

Gil's gruff voice was low. He was frustrated with Sara. "We're not a couple. WE have a son. Besides she knows…knew how I felt."

"How would she know that?"

"She knows that she can wrap me around her little finger. She knows how I feel about her. If she wanted me, she could have had me. She started dating Barksdale."

Catherine shut her eyes against the light. "You have to be kidding Gil. I mean you have to be. You BROKE up with her. You tried to deny responsibility for your son. You did NOTHING to show her that you wanted to reconcile. "

Gil huffed again.

"Look I have a terrible headache. I don't have time to sugar coat this. You're living next door to the mother of your child. You have a steady girlfriend who doesn't know that you're paying for said house and that you are, basically, financing Sara's lifestyle."

"How did…."

"Oh please. Sara's income was virtually cut in half." Catherine clucked her tongue, "Worst cases scenario can go either way. Sara will leave and take Justin with her, or she'll stay and this whole thing plays out and you're forced to make a choice. Vanessa may be sweet, but when it comes to you, Sara is lethal. As you are with her. Ever notice that Martin goes the other way when he sees you coming and he refuses to deal with any case you have to testify in?"

"I…."

Catherine continued.

"Look. It's going to be a bad scene when Vanessa walks in on your naked ass with Sara's legs wrapped around you like a boa constrictor. Really Gil. No one deserves to get caught in the Grissom Sidle cross fire. Warrick and I love you like family. Even we forget to duck sometimes."

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He would control the situation this time. He would initiate the reconciliation.

She woke from a precise dream to a wavy reality. Justin was with Gil's mother at his house. She thought of that as soon as his hand snaked across a naked hip.

She wrapped her arm around his neck and spoke against familiar scent. He wasn't surprised to find her naked under the cool white sheet. She knew him better than anyone.

"I miss you." He said into her clean scented hair as he guiltily fought back tears.

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Sara spooned more fruit into his mouth.

"Are we moving too fast?" He asked seriously. "I mean knocking out the walls to our houses. That means we would be living together."

She straddled his lap and dark nipples brushed against his mouth.

"What do you think?" She said kissing him firmly.

"I think I am being influenced by an officer of the court."

"Good."

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One year old Justin Grissom was sure that he had experienced the most wonderful birthday of any boy ever. Yesterday he had been surrounded by family and friends who were convinced of his brilliance and never before seen cuteness. There was cake, ice cream and pizza with not just cheese but with something round and salty. He only got that kind of food when he was with his father.

His Uncle Brass had bought him a toy gun, much to his mother's dismay. Thank god his father had rescued it before Sara Sidle could trash it.

"Don't worry Justin. I won't let Mom get her hands on it." He had winked.

His parents. They were doing what he saw other kid's parents did. They were laughing and talking and kissing and sleeping in the same bed like when he was sick. Only this time he wasn't sick.

That Vanessa lady was nice, but she was no Sara Sidle. No indeed. His mother could burp with the best of them and she liked to watch all that cool stuff on Discovery just like his Dad.

He figured it would only be a matter of time before his mother had the same last name as he and his father. He wasn't sure how that happened but it seemed to be very important. Maybe there would be more cake and pizza with round salty things.

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"Where are you going?"

"To the symphony," Sara said swiping something gooey and pink on her lips.

When did she start wearing that lip gloss? Young silly women wore lip gloss. Not his Sara.

He watched as a black wand appeared and she elongated already long lashes.

"Who are you going with?" He wanted to know as his arms folded across his wide chest. He sniffed the air. She was wearing perfume, real perfume. Not cologne or body splash.

"Martin," She replied simply.

He didn't speak for a solid minute, giving Sara enough time to slide past him and out what was still her front door.

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"I can't believe you went out with your ex boyfriend. How would you like it if I went out with Vanessa?"

"You did, didn't you?" She said taking down her hair. Gil sniffed the air to make sure that she still smelled only of perfume.

"I mean that's where you were last week when you were so vague. Out with Vanessa. I believe you two had lunch and then went to see a movie."

Gil stopped cold. Stupid, stupid man. You are a stupid, stupid man Gil Grissom. On her slowest day she's still smarter than you.

"Sara…"

She gave him a blank stare that covered the depth of her pain. She kicked off her shoes and they slid several inches across the hardwood floor.

"Justin get to sleep okay?"

"Sara…"

"I thought he might be a little congested." She worked on her diamond earrings and her pearl's handed down from Maria Grissom. She was sure that a marriage was imminent. Maybe Justin could give them to his wife or daughter. That would be nice.

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He was sitting on the edge of her bed. He had been watching her sleep for a least an hour.

He beat the locksmith by minutes. He knew her as well as she knew him.

She woke slowly, mumbling something to him in her sleep, then laughing at something funny that Nick said, finally reaching across to his former place in the bed stopping when she came in contact with his blue jean covered thigh.

"I want to explain."

"I know that you do," she kept her eyes closed, "You just can't."

"Sara it's absolutely not what you think."

"I think that you have been singing that "take it slow" refrain because you don't know what you want. Or maybe you do."

She turned her back on him, "Look, I am sure I bear some fault in this because I threatened you with taking Justin. I won't do that. You know I won't. I just might not be able to live next door to you any longer and I'll have to get a full time job. We'll make it work for Justin."

"I want to make it work for us." He pleaded.

"It can't. You can't. You tried to tell me that before Justin was born. You have tried to tell me since then. I get it now."

He realized she was crying now. It never occurred to him that anything he had done would profoundly hurt her. She was always tough and reactive.

Don't want to take responsibility for your son? I'll haul you into court.

Don't want me? I'll date someone else.

He never worried about her emotional health, he was too busy taking care of his own.

"It's not what you think. It's not. I swear to you it's not." Her shoulders heaved with emotion as he touched them. Her palm wiped away tears.

"I should have told you. I'm sorry."

"I haven't been on a real date in ages. I don't dress up. I don't go anywhere. I just stay home with my family and play homemaker. I thought that's where we were headed."

He put one forearm around her and lay down next to her. "It is. We are. We are a family."

"Apparently not. You take her out to lunch. You take her to the movies. Do you know the last time I saw a movie in a movie theater? I wear my hair in a pony tail. I have Justin's drool and Stage Three baby food on my shirt most of the time. If it's not baby drool, it's residue from one my labs at school. All I seemed to be good for his having your babies because you certainly don't want to be seen with me in public."

"Sara, I went to lunch with Vanessa. I did that. I did not go to the movies with her. I went to the movies by myself. I should have told you. I should have. I felt like I owed her an apology. I never really broke up with her. I just stopped calling and answering the phone when she called. I was trying to do the right thing. I got this crazy notion in my head that we might have more kids and I didn't want my daughter to ever be treated like that and so I apologized. Going to the movies was just a flook I was out. It was Star Trek. You and Justin were at your playgroup. I had a few hours to kill."

He moved his body closer to her. "I'm sorry if I neglected you as a woman, as MY woman. I was content. I had everything I wanted so I figured that you had everything you wanted. You have to tell me these things. I'm an old guy. Give me a good meal, my kid and a little nookie and it's a pretty stellar evening for me."

She laughed despite herself. "Am I still in trouble?" He asked and pressed his chest into her back. He kissed one shoulder.

"Oh yeah."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Snapshots Part Two**

**A/N Kisses and rainbows to my betas Joan and Griot. As always let me know what you think.**

"No," Sara said.

"Why not?" Gil pulled his son's fingers from his hair. Justin reached for another handful and bounced on his father's chest.

"Da," the boy said over and over again.

"I don't get that," Sara said as she laid down beside the two male Grissom's. "He won't say Momma but he says Daddy."

Justin blew bubbles of spit much to his father's delight.

"Why?" Gil asked.

"Because it's too soon. We just started counseling. We can't just move in together."

"We aren't moving. We are knocking out two walls." Gil held up two fingers for his son to see. Justin grabbed at the fingers.

"You are so good with him," Sara sighed as she kissed Gil's forehead.

"It's not helping me convince me you to knock out the walls," Gil lamented, savoring the feel of her lips on his cool skin."

xxx

"So can we move in together now?" Gil asked impatiently as he played with the fingers on Sara's hand.

Dr. Sing looked from Gil to Sara. "Is that why you come here Gil, to convince Sara to move in with you?"

"Yes," He said truthfully.

Sara cut her eyes at him stunned that he actually admitted it. "Gil.."

"No. No." Dr. Sing held up a hand. "It's honest. That's how he feels. There are worse reasons to come to counseling. I will tell you, Dr. Grissom, that we are almost there. Fair enough?"

Gil nodded, gripping Sara's hand tighter.

"If I can get you to articulate why you were so hesitant about becoming a father"

Sara felt heat sear through her body. "Do we have to talk about this?" Sara wanted to know. Her eyes were filled with pain.

"Why don't you want to talk about it, Sara?" Dr. Sing asked.

She looked at Gil. "It makes him sad. When he's sad, Justin and I are sad."

xxx

Sara was hovering between sated reality and erotic contemplation.

"Happy Birthday," he said, sleepily trying to fight the wave of drowsiness that was engulfing both of them.

"It's not my birthday yet," she whispered back.

Her body was draped over his. The ceiling fan cooled their sweating forms. Sometimes she needed the tangibility of his body to remind her that he was there and things were good between them.

"You were born at 12:14 a.m. It is now 12:15 a.m."

Sara didn't lift her head. He remembered what time she was born. She shuddered to think about the vegetarian incident. If she had left because he didn't realize that she didn't eat meat, she wouldn't have Justin or Gil.

"Open your eyes."

Sara did. "He pressed a thick white envelope in her hand."

"I know I am good, but it would be much less seemly if you left it on the nightstand."

She laughed as she ripped opened the envelope.

In it were all measure and sizes of traditional tickets and e-tickets. Tickets to concerts at the symphony and the opera. There were tickets to see Celine Dion and Norah Jones and Cassandra Wilson. There were tickets to David Copperfield and murder mystery games and Cirque du Soleil. Sara even found tickets to the Blue Men Group, which Gil loathed.

They all had different dates for the next year.

Sara kissed him hard, enjoying the taste of their mingled juices on his tongue. "We have dates for the next year. We have real dates for the entire next year. Wait till I go to playgroup. Who cares about Judith Winestock and her Escalade. I have tickets. Tickets to grown up events."

"Actually we have a date every other week for the next year. I have secured Lindsey, a Red Cross trained babysitter for normal hourly rate plus Algebra tutoring."

Sara took the tickets and fanned them over her naked body.

"Tickets," she sighed.

"And the dates start in exactly one month."

"One month? Why so long? What do I care? I wonder if Judy Winestock is up this late. You know what? I don't think I care. I am so sick of her perfect twins and her life and her perfect husband."

Gil slapped her naked ass. "Honey, you are rambling."

"Sorry."

"Don't you want to know why we start in a month?"

Sara kissed his beard. "Because we are going to Hawaii for a week vacation."

Sara licked dried sweat from his neck. Gil felt sensual rumblings in his belly.

"Actually we are going to Bermuda' for ten days."

Sara stopped and looked into Gil's clear eyes. "What..."

"And before you say it. It's a family friendly resort so we don't heave to leave Justin. They have childcare so we can have a little time alone."

He was stunned to see Sara dissolve in tears.

xxx

The cool breeze lifted the curtains of Gil and Sara's resort suite. He wasn't snoring and he hardly woke up congested like he did in Vegas. She would purchase a humidifier for their room. She would scent it with lavender and vanilla.

_He is so good to me. Why can't I just let this marriage thing go? He's changed for the better. He's a good man. He loves me. I love him. We have a beautiful son. _

_Why can't I just be happy with that?_

She kissed him quickly and he smiled in his sleep. She snuggled close to him and tried to be thankful for a happy, healthy family.

Sara sat across from the other couple, the Andersons. He was a biology professor. She was a Physics text book editor. They were a much better fit than the table mates from the day before, a used care salesman and a cocktail waitress.

When Andy and Sandy Hilton had eluded to the fact that they liked to swing, Gil had made their excuses and fled.

Tonight Ella Anderson had asked them how long they had been married. Gil had had responded that they weren't.

Sara was stunned to find herself embarrassed. She spent the rest of the meal starring into her lap.

Why couldn't she just tell Gil that the she wanted to get married?

Gil handed her a glass of champagne. His tie was loose. His jacket flung over a nearby chair. He looked young and sexy. Fatherhood had been good to him. It had wiped away years of jaded weariness. "You okay?"

Sara slipped her shoes off and propped them up on a rail of the balcony.

He admired her long, muscled legs. "You were quiet during dinner."

She smiled bravely and took a sip of the bubbly liquid. "I think I don't know what to do with myself with so much free time. Feels like I should be dong something."

He leaned over to kiss an ear. "You deserve it. You have made a good home for us."

xxx

The tall muscular man was not used to being intimidated by anyone. The only people he feared were his mother and his wife and now this slip of a one with the bourbon colored eyes.

The long limbed boy rested on her hip, thumb jammed into his mouth, blue eyes staring serene despite his mother's tirade.

"Another month, Jimbo?"

"My name is Jim."

"Look, Jimbo. You don't have another month. You have one week, as per our agreement. You remember that don't you, Jimbo? Our contract?"

The man tried again. "Yes ma'am. But I didn't know we would have to deal with structural integrity issues."

Sara covered her son's ears, much to his dismay. Mommy saying bad words always made for an exciting day.

"Jimbo, just say our foundation is shit. We know that Jimbo. We know that. We told you that."

She released her son's ears. He was starting to feel sorry for the man. His mother could be difficult. His father seemed to be the only person who could handle her when she was in one of her moods.

Sara hissed again. "You just wait until Grissom hears about this. He's going to take one of those dead bodies he works on and he's going to put the head in your truck, Jimbo."

xxx

"Honey."

Sara smiled as she heard Gil's voice. "When are you coming home? We miss you."

Gil dreaded what he was about to say. "I miss you guys too. Honey Jim called."

Sara glared at her son. Justin blew a spit bubble. His mother always thought he was in cahoots with his father. Mostly she was right.

"He says you yelled at him."

"Uh Huh."

"He says he's scared to come back out."

"Oh please. He's a six foot three, two hundred and fifty pound man. I weigh a buck twenty five with bricks in my pockets."

"He said you referred to dead bodies and heads."

Justin laughed. Sara hedged.

"It was a metaphor for our house."

"Right. Honey you can't scare Jim. You just can't. He's the best guy in town. He's a nice man. He's not a crook and he has four kids to feed, and a wife."

The children did Sara in.

xxx

Jim thrust a cake in Sara's direction and mumbled in his heavy Georgia accent. "My Naomi says I was to give you this."

Sara took the proffered treat and lifted the top off the carrier. "Chocolate chip pound cake," Sara said approvingly.

"My Naomi says I am supposed to apologize. I am not sure for what, but she said that anyone that has toddler should be allowed to cuss at any grown person. She also says I am supposed to knock off twenty percent."

Sara smiled. "Well my..." She was just about to say husband when it occurred to her that Gil was not her husband and it saddened her.

xxx

Gil walked down the long hallway, whistling a happy tune and flipping through his mail. He stopped when he saw the bubbles coming from the hall bathroom. Justin was soaking wet.

"I can't believe I said those words."

Justin's was glad that his father was finally home. His father was always far more reasonable than his mother. He could explain the crickets and the laundry detergent. His father would understand that it was an experiment. They were men of science. Gil Grissom could be reasoned with.

"What words?" Gil kissed Sara first then his son, lifting the boy from the floor, oblivious to his wet clothing. Sara remembered when she had tried to kiss her father one summer day, after playing in the fire hydrant. He had pushed her away. It was one of the only clear memories she had of the man.

"What did you do?" he said to Justin, who was on the verge of telling his father he was being maligned. He thought better of it when he realized that at least two of the crickets were dead. His father did not like dead bugs. He really should have thought his experiment out a bit more.

Sara huffed. "I, Sara Sidle, liberated woman said, 'Wait until your father comes home.'

Pride coursed through him as he found his son's wide eyes. Gil's own father had left and never come home. He looked into Justin's face. It never occurred to this little boy that Gil would not return.

He was surprised at the words that came out of his mouth. "I am quitting."

Justin let out the breath he had been holding and his father hugged his wet body close.

"Daddy's going to do some nice insect studies. Leave the criminals to someone who doesn't have the best little boy in the world."

xxx

Gil had been watching Dr. Phil and Oprah. They said that men were supposed to shoulder their share of responsibility with regard to housework if both parents worked.

Sara had finished her dissertation and was guiltily mulling over an offer from the university. Gil wanted to show her no one would suffer if she wanted to work full time.

That was what he was thinking as he emptied pockets, doing laundry while his son slept.

Justin was notorious for hording and hiding things in his pockets. Sara had discouraged the practice by spray painting a shoe box gold and gluing fake jewels on it. Now Justin mostly kept his treasures in there.

Absently he pulled something round from a pocket. He looked at the circles for a long moment.

A wedding band and an engagement ring.

He went to his kit and found his jeweler's loop.

Counterfeit.

He looked at the pants that he still had in one hand. They were Sara's favorite jeans.

He put the rings in the box he had carved himself in their backyard while watching his son chase butterflies. He tried to think what to do.

xxx

Gil liked how he felt when he walked in their front door laden with mail and purchases, calling out to his family. He felt strong and ridiculously middle class. He had it all. He had a family and the house and the mid sized sedan. Who would have ever thought Gil Grissom would lust after mediocrity?

Of course there was nothing mediocre about their lives. He had found the love of his life. They had a beautiful son. Sara was charging people ridiculous amounts of money for either of them to lecture or consult.

Those were his thought as he walked into his front door after his final hours as Night Shift Supervisor at the Las Vegas Forensics lab.

He carried chocolate covered strawberries and a bottle of sparkling wine from one of their client's vineyards. He was just pondering the idea of Sara in the black thong he had purchased on a whim when he felt it.

A man knows his missteps and a smart man knows how to dodge them or rectify them. Gil wasn't sure what he had done as he found Sara in their office, but his mind searched for ways to minimize the damage.

She held the white paper lightly as if it stung or poisoned her.

"You bought that woman a ring."

"What..."

"You bought Vanessa an engagement ring." She eyed his purchases coolly. Her mouth was turned up to in a vicious grin.

"I..."

"Is this not a receipt for an engagement ring dated nine months after I gave birth to your sonour son?"

"It is a receipt for a ring" he admitted

Gil moved closer watching Sara's hand, her grip becoming tighter on the paper.

"And who did you buy said ring for?"

"Vanessa," Gil said simply. He needed more time than he had.

Sara read the receipt as if she were testifying in court. "One point six carats, color E, wow that's nearly colorless."

She stared at him for several seconds before she began to read again, only slower this time.

"Clarity VVS1 platinum engagement ring."

She nailed him with and volatile gaze. "The receipt says it was an engagement ring."

Sara looked in his hands. "Hmmm. I see champagne and chocolates and bag that probably contains a little skimpy number that you want me to parade my bare ass around in. How, you wonder, do I know that? Well I know that because I know _you _Gil Grissom. You like the idea of having it all. You like having the little woman that only works part time, whose turned your home into a regular showplace. The little woman that makes sure your son eats all his veggies and listens to the appropriate amount of Mozart verses Beethoven. The son who falls adoringly into your arms when you come home because his daddy is his hero. A notion the little woman encourages because she half idolizes him herself. She would never tell said son that his daddy didn't' want him before he was born. That he showed up after this little woman carried this little boy for nine months 7 days and two hours and twenty seven minutes and took to fathering like he did everything else, effortlessly."

Gil put down the packages on the leather chair that set to his right. Sara had searched six months until she found just the right chair.

He watched as Sara balled up the paper and drop it silently on the desk. Months of frustration bubbled to the surface and knocked the breath from him.

"Yes, Gilbert Grissom has it all. He has the homemaker at home. The smart professorial to show to his colleagues and his little whore in bed. Where she does everything but give him a menu of sexual delights to choose from. He has the perfect life. Hell he has the perfect wife. But I am not the little wife am I? Hell, I don't even see a plain wedding band, let alone a top shelf engagement ring."

The screaming started then. Sara's voice carrying through thick walls saying things that scared him and shamed him. Taking the champagne and smashing it against one wall.

"Play nice." That's what their son said from the doorway as he clutched his treasure chest that he cherished because his mother had made it just for him. Sara stopped cold and he knew what she was thinking. He saw it slide over her sharp features.

Her parents.

When she ran from the house, he did not try and stop her. That would only anger her more.

Take care of Justin first, she would say.

xxx

Gil dialed the number for what must have been the twentieth time. She had been gone for hours. He wasn't even sure if she had her cell phone.

Justin came into the empty living room. Gil had lain with him until he had fallen asleep. Now he was up again.

"Daddy still in trouble?" He wanted to know as Gil pulled him onto his lap, kissing the top of his curls.

"Yes."

"Telling stories bad. Mommy say never tell stories."

"She's right," Gil replied in a sad heavy voice.

"Bad," Justin admonished again as he pulled something from a hidden fold of his Spiderman pajamas. He pressed a red cellophane wrapped sucker and a penny with one side nearly rubbed off into his father's hands.

"Don't be sad, Daddy. Mommy don't stay mad always."

xxx

It was Warrick who found her playing slots at Circus Circus. She had been gone for nearly twelve hours. She had hoped for twenty four. She expected twelve.

"Only a mother would go to an amusement park to get away."

"Go away Warrick," Sara said wearily. "Just tell them you couldn't find me. Give me a few more hours, would ya?"

"You know I can't do that. Come on. Have you been drinking?" He was sure she hadn't, but needed to ask just in case.

"No."

"Win any money?"

"Two thousand dollars at roulette. Thousand at poker and Fifteen hundred dollars at poker."

Warrick dropped his voice. "Damn. How much you start with?"

"Couple hundred."

"We should get you mad more often. We all could retire. Now home to your Mister so the rest of us can get some sleep."

xxx

They were both sitting in the window when she pulled up with Warrick as an escort. Up and down went Justine Grissom as he screamed, "Mommy home."

Gil crossed himself for the first time in years.

xxx

He rubbed her back and gave her tea with a splash of brandy. He held her close and kissed her eyelids as tears escaped them.

Later, while smiling, he would chastise her for spoiling Justin with trips to Circus Circus every day for a week. He told her that he loved her. He told her that she was a good mother. He assured her that everything would be alright.

"You are not your parents." Sara returned skittish and melancholy insisting that she should leave Justin with him, until she could get her "temper" under control.

"Honey. Yes you got mad. Yes you screamed and you yelled and Justin was worried and maybe a little scared. But not traumatized. This is not a pattern. You don't do this all the time and you weren't' yelling at him. You were yelling at me. He knows that you would never do that."

His strong hands held the tea cup to her mouth. A tear splashed into the cup.

"The moment you realized that he was there. You left. You removed yourself from the situation. You are not a danger to Justin. Please let's just see what Doctor Sing says."

Sara made mewing sounds in the back of her throat and Gil was glad that she loved him enough, trusted him enough to let her guard down. "I don't want to be them."

"You aren't them. We aren't. "

He had talked to Dr. Sing quietly while Sara sat next to him on the long purple couch. She stared straight ahead as Gil detailed the pattern of her descent. He had known something was wrong but he had assumed things would be better when he was home more and able to help more with Justin.

She had been moody. She had always had a temper but recently things were different. There were snippy outbursts over nothing. Sleeping past noon. Crying jaunts in the bathroom.

Depression.

Chronic depression from which she had suffered for most of her life. She had self medicated herself with work and studying and seeking professional perfection.

Now with time to think and a less frantic pace, the grey despair surfaced.

Gil handed her the small pink pill. He held a glass of his home brewed root beer.

"How did you know?"

"Mom had it for awhile. Me too. When I was in college. Some after Holly was hurt."

He had called Dr. Sing and explained what he suspected. "You did? You took pills? I mean you took drugs. I thought it was all chemistry. You took them after Holly? "

Gil nodded. "It is. Situations sometimes prompt chemistry. Like if you are prone to ear infections and you swim often. "

"What else did Dr. Sing say?" She was frightened of the pill. A pill meant that you were weak and prone to lose control. A pill meant you had to depend on something outside of yourself and the people you loved.

"He said he is referring you to a therapist that deals with PSD."

She put her head on his shoulder. "Because of my parents."

"Uh Huh. And because of the kind of work you used to do."

"I don't want to take medication" she said putting the pill in her mouth and taking a sip of root beer. The bubbles tickled and soothed her scratchy throat.

"I know you don't. Just think how different it might have been if even one of your parents had been diagnosed properly and taken their meds and talked to someone."

"Am I going to have to take these always? What about if I get pregnant again?" They had been talking about another baby, but were still weighing the pros and cons."

"Dr. Sing says these are fine for pregnant women and it's a very low dosage."

"I feel like a failure. Drugs, just so I don't yell at the man I love."

"This won't stop you yelling at me if it's warranted. It WAS warranted. It will just temper your response. You will still feel things. The reaction will be more appropriate and you won't smash a fifty dollar bottle of wine against a wall."

"How long did you take them?" She asked laying her head on his shoulder.

"The first time? About a year. The second time a month or so. I didn't actually feel better until you were here. I wanted you to come so I could keep you safe. Whatever that meant."

"I know. You like having all your people where you can see them."

"So will Justin have to take them? I mean, do you think he will be predisposed."

He kissed her hair. "I don't know. He has some heredity to deal with. But he's growing up with both his parents. He's way more adjusted than either of us were at his age, I am sure. Lindsey takes a very low dosage. Although the doctor said she won't need that much longer.

"Catherine?"

"Yes Catherine has had some biological and situation issues. The fact that at least one of her brother's had a substance abuse problem probably means that they were both self medicating when they were doing coke. Look. The only one of our friends who hasn't needed a little help is Nick."

"Warrick?"

"Anxiety. That's why he gambled. When he stopped, he had to deal with the issue. When he was playing some kind of sport year round, the adrenalin kept him balanced."

"Brass?"

"Depression. That's why he drank, which made him more depressed."

"Greg?"

Gil laughed softly. "Hyper activity. But they never found a drug that worked. You ever wonder why he has so many hobbies? His parents just kept him busy and that's how he coped."

"How do you know all this stuff?"

"They have to tell a supervisor what drugs they are taking. When Brass was boss, I had to tell him. He told just so someone would know in case something happened to him."

Sara kissed his cheek. "I didn't know we were supposed to do that. How did I miss that?

"Were you ever taking anything when I was your boss?"

Sara sighed with contentment. "No. Maybe"

"What?" He pulled her closer to him and rested against the headboard.

"I was on antibiotics right around the time I got pregnant with Justin. Remember?"

The both took in the information for a moment.

"Glad you forgot to tell me," Gil said.

xxx

Gil placed the cold white towel on Sara's forehead. She gave a little sigh. It was good not to be alone, to have someone to take of you when you were sick. What would she have done if she had moved away to a place where she had no friends or family?

"You don't feel hot. I told you that salad dressing looked hinky."

Sara kept here eyes closed enjoying the gentleness that flowed from him. Sara kissed his hand knowing that it hadn't been the salad dressing.

"Maybe it's all the dust from the renovations. Maybe we should move into a hotel until it's finished."

"You are so good to me." She said gently

xxx

Another kid. He had not expected this. He had expected it to be Justin, Daddy and Mommy forever.

_I hope this doesn't make Daddy mean again._

Daddy hadn't been too thrilled to hear about him but he had come around. Justin had figured he would. Even when he was trying to be his meanest he couldn't quite pull it. Justin could tell that his voice was directed to Sara's belly just checking to see how he was doing.

Justin usually kicked to let his father know that he was okay and that he couldn't wait to meet him.

When Justin was born, his father appeared a few hours later and Justin had been thrilled. He had soft hair on his face and pretty, sparkly eyes and he was big and cuddly and strong and smelled good. Justin thought between him and his mother he must have hit the parent lottery.

And when were they going to have the thing were Mommy got the same last name and there was cake and red juice and people dressed in fancy clothes?

xxx

Justin watched anxiously. He thought it was good plan that Mom had brought him for the announcement. Adorableness was called for during times like these.

Sara thrust the stick in Gil's direction.

"Look."

He peered at the white stick and the digital read out. Sara's shaking hand kept him from making out the word. Gil held her hand steadily.

Pregnant.

The word was clear as day. He looked at Sara, who had Justin poised on one hip. They both looked defiant. His son had the amazing ability to morph into either one of them at will.

"Ok." Gil didn't know what else to say.

Sara knew the irrationality of her words even before she spoke them. "Are you going to leave me? Cause if you are, I need to know."

Justin frowned at his father. Gil opened his arms and the boy leaped into them.

"Traitor," Sara mumbled.

"No one is leaving anyone. Sit down." He patted the place next to him on the couch. Sara heaved a sigh of relief.

"I thought we wanted another baby," Gil said, taking in her tense profile.

"I thought we were still in discussion. I don't want you to be mad."

He looked at her sad eyes. "I know this makes you nervous, considering the last time. But I would never do that again. You understand me?"

Sara gave him a slow smile. "Can we talk with Dr. Sing?"

Gil wondered at how they had both changed. "Of course we can. I am very proud of you."

"I think your Mom needs a girl."

Justin nodded. That would be nice. A little sister. He just hoped she wasn't like Mommy. He didn't know if he was ready to handle another one of those. If he knew how to write, now would be a good time to take notes.

xxx

Justin and his father had on matching LAVP denim hats pulled low on their heads. When they entered the cool store, Gil whispered that gentlemen should always take their hats off inside.

Justin nodded gleefully as he looked around the store. Everything was sparkly and shiny and reminded him of his treasure box.

"Let's see what we can find Mom," Gil said softly. Justin clapped his hands in appreciation and excitement.

xxx

Justin ran to where his mother was sitting and handed her the white shopping bag. His father was close on his heels.

"What is this?"

"Sister," Justin smiled proudly.

Sara looked into the bag and pulled out a lacy white dress with pearl buttons. "Oh, my. Did you pick this out for Sister?"

Gil put one hand on his son's head. "He insisted that we buy Sister something even though we went out to get him a good boy present. He doesn't want Sister to be left out when she get here."

Sara kissed Justin's cheeks and Gil's hand. "I think I have the best men in the world. "

She patted her belly. "This is very fancy. Do you think Sister will wear this to her christening?"

"Well" Gil took a seat beside Sara and pulled his son into his lap. "We thought there might be someplace else she could wear it."

Sara looked at the two look alike smiling faces. "Where are we going? Are we going on another vacation after the baby?"

"In a manner of speaking."

Justin wanted to get the show on the road. "Close you eye."

Sara did as he requested. She hoped she knew what was happening, but tried not to get her hopes up.

It was Justin who proffered the ring when she opened them again. "You get married."

xxx

"No."

Sara looked from Grissom to Grissom. She knew they were both counting on their cute factor. She would not fall prey to that.

Elder Grissom spoke first. "Aw, come on. You promised."

Justin chimed in. "Promise is promise."

"I said that you each could pick one food for the reception. One within the constraints of an elegant, tasteful menu."

They followed her as she went down the hall.

"Mommy. Promise is promise"

She stopped short and wheeled on them. She pointed to Justin first. "We are not having pepperoni pizza at my wedding. Newsflash, little Gil Grissom. I don't eat meat."

Justin showed two front teeth forgetting what he was standing firm on. He loved it when people called him that.

She directed her dark eyes at her husband to be. "And you. We are not having your home brewed beer in galvanized steel tubs. Beer is not a food. Beer is a beverage."

She fled down the hall. Gil and Justin followed calling, "Beer is made from hops. Hops is within an FDA food category. Come on."

"Promise is Promise Mommy"

Sara muttered to her daughter. "I need backup, baby girl, cause these two are going to send me around the bend."

xxx

Sara was hot. The air had not survived the renovation. The part to fix it could only be found in Jersey. She touched a damp head full of curls.

"Gil, I told you. You can't snuggle up to a pregnant woman when there is no air condition."

She heard him mumble something.

"What?"

She opened her eyes. Justin Grissom filled the space between them. He was dressed in Superman pajamas, clutching his inflatable word and wearing a helmet.

"Gil," She said again. Neither Grissom male stirred.

She touched his shoulder. He sat up in bed, eyes wide, sweat turning his hair into a cotton puff. "Is it time?"

Sara grinned. He had been on pins and needles since she had entered her eighth month.

He squinted in the darkness and made out his son's form. "What is he doing?"

Sara shook her head. "I thought you knew."

He touched his son's sleeping form. "Hey little man."

Justin repeated his own version of his father's earlier movements.. "Sister coming."

"No. Why are you dressed like that?" Sara said gently, a little mad at herself for waking the sleeping child.

Justin closed his eyes and clutched the plastic sword to him. "Daddy said I protect Sister. He protect Mommy."

Sara hugged his form as he dropped back off to sleep. "I love you, my sweet boy."

xxx

Sara and her hour old daughter were transfixed with one another. Gil alternated between crying and grinning until his jaw hurt.

"She's beautiful."

"She is." Sara said softly wondering at the head of black hair that was already starting to curl.

"She's never going on a date."

xxx

Sara and Gil looked at their son. He had adopted his stubborn stance. He would be a big man, a solid man, like his father. He didn't throw tantrums. He did not lie, because he lived in a world where telling the truth was always safe. He wasn't spoiled. He was gentle and sweet and a joy. Except when you broke a promise.

"Promise is promise."

Sara sighed. He was right. She wondered at promising a two and half year old that he could name his sister. Gil had warned her that residual guilt over the fight had lowered her usually perfect parental reasoning.

Their daughter was three days old and she did not have a name. She was referred to as Sister by her brother and Sweetheart by her father.

Gil read the list again. "Ariel, Cinderella, Dora, Jasmine, Mulan and Lilo."

Sara looked at the set of her son's jaw and intensity of his eyes.

"Want to know what they mean?" Gil asked.

Sara reached for her son. He sat next to her happy that the stalemate was winding down. Sister was asleep. She slept a lot which made protecting her easy. He checked in on her often and alerted his parents when she made the smallest movement. He was pretty sure that he had this bigger brother thing down. Now, if they would only see the wisdom of his name choices.

xxx

They were all there, Nick, Warrick, Greg, Catherine, Brass, Maria Grissom even Jim the contractor and his wife Naomi. They married in their backyard, filled with white flowers that Gil had planted in long white rows.

The men surprised even themselves. They toasted with home brewed beer named after each man. Warrick's was smooth, Nick's sweet, Greg's playful and Brass' had an edge. They laughed and cried and hugged one another.

Justin Michael Grissom, dressed in his tiny small tux and Jasmine Maria, in her pearl studded dress, were kissed and hugged and loved on for hours. Jasmine was convinced this was the best bunch that any little girl could ever have wanted. She wasn't exactly sure how they were all related, since they all looked so very different. But she would figure it out in time.

There was pepperoni pizza and caviar, chips and salsa and imported cheeses. They stayed too late and most drank too much. They all spent the night in the cozy house. The house that had been two separate structures was now one. Gil woke early and made them breakfast. Things were different, new and better than any of them had hoped.

Fin


End file.
